


dealing

by starkly



Series: you don't have to do this alone [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Fae & Fairies, Gen, Pre-Iron Man 1, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-13
Updated: 2018-01-13
Packaged: 2019-03-04 04:32:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13356579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starkly/pseuds/starkly
Summary: While things aren't always easy having inhuman friends, Tony learns the hard way it's good to have the supernatural on your side.





	dealing

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for NaNoWriMo 2017 and posted at [dailyironfamily](http://dailyironfamily.tumblr.com/post/167106414835/day-03-supernatural-au) on tumblr. This fic was proofread before being posted here but is otherwise unchanged.
> 
> Day three: supernatural AU. This fic features human Tony, fae Pepper, and werewolf Rhodey, set mostly pre-IM1. Partially inspired by reioka's [halloween au](https://reioka.tumblr.com/tagged/halloween-au) because I love the idea of fae Pepper.

“Pepper? Have you got those reports I need to check—holy shit!”

Tony nearly drops his coffee mug as he steps back into the door frame, wincing as it hits him right between the shoulder blades. In his office, Pepper gasps and spins away from the door, but not before Tony gets a good look at her decidedly inhuman features.

He scrambles to shut the door behind him, keeping his voice low as he says, “Pep, is there something you want to tell me?”

“ _Stop_ ,” she snaps, and he freezes without thinking about it.

He holds his hands up, mug still clutched in one of them. “Okay, okay. I stopped.”

She doesn’t move for a long moment, and when she finally turns back around her face is normal again, her expression slightly strained. “Can I help you, Mr. Stark?”

“Ohhh, no no no. We’re not ignoring this.” Tony sets his mug down on a side table, squinting at Pepper’s face. “Did you  _lie_  on your job application?”

Pepper sniffs disdainfully. “Omitting the truth isn’t lying.”

“That is such a fae thing to say,” Tony says, slightly in awe, and Pepper’s face turns stormy.

“Excuse me?”

“That’s what you are, right?” Tony plows on, unconcerned where others may already have fled for their lives. “Fae? I’ve never met one of you in real life.”

“I should hope not, you get in enough trouble as it is,” Pepper mutters. She smooths her hands down the front of her suit jacket, clearly still composing herself. “And I’m not.”

“Not what?”

“A full fae.”

“Your face was pretty…” He gestures vaguely at his own face, at a loss for words to describe the fae countenance. He’d always thought Pepper had a somewhat otherworldly appearance, but he’d always chalked that up to being attracted to her.

Pepper bites her lip, glancing away. Whatever reservations she has, they’re apparently wearing away, because she sits down in his desk chair and says, “I can do a low-level glamour. It doesn’t take up a lot of concentration, most of the time.”

“That’s wild.” Tony sits down in the chair in front of the desk, still staring at Pepper. “Why are you even here? It’s illegal for fae to go into human business.”

“I was just an accountant!” Pepper exclaims, tossing her hands up in annoyance. “I didn’t technically  _try_  to be the assistant to the  _CEO_. That was all your doing.”

He grins, not at all repentant. “Pepper ‘Virginia’ Potts—”

“Virginia is my real name, not—”

“—we are going to have so much fun.”

Her protests die out at once, mouth a little ‘o’ of surprise. “You’re not going to fire me?”

“What? No way! That’s probably discrimination or something.”

She frowns. “It’s legal, unfortunately.”

“Really? We should work on that.” Tony leans forward, both hands on the desk. “Look, you’re the best P.A. I’ve ever had. The only way you’re getting rid of me is if I die. So. I won’t tell anyone if you don’t.”

Pepper looks at him, and Tony forces himself to stare back and not fidget. Finally, she holds out a hand. “It’s a deal, Mr. Stark.”

Tony reaches out, almost taking her hand and shaking it before he stops. “Never make a deal with a fae,” he whispers, half to himself, half to her.

Pepper doesn’t drop her glamour, but when she grins at him, it feels like he’s looking at something he shouldn’t.

* * *

“Stop moving,” Rhodey mutters, gently stilling Tony with a hand on his chin to steady him. “You’re messing me up.”

“Because you keep poking the big-ass bruise around my eye,” Tony grumbles, but he tries to keep still so Rhodey can continue applying the concealer.

“Maybe that’s what you get for throwing yourself into a fight like that with a guy three times your size.”

Tony frowns indignantly. “You heard him, he was shit-talking werewolves! Doesn’t it irritate you how basically every shapeshifter gives you shit like that?”

“Yeah, but I also know not to pick fights with guys who can literally turn into bears.”

Tony had figured that if Rhodey wasn’t going to defend himself, he ought to step in. He has no idea why Rhodey always gets upset when he does that kind of stuff, but considering Rhodey was the only werewolf in the whole military who went into the Air Force instead of the Army when they were kids, Tony assumes Rhodey was prone to weirdness. Werewolves were  _not_  fond of heights as a general rule.

“It wasn’t even a grizzly,” Tony scoffs, then hisses as Rhodey touches a sensitive spot below his eye. “Hey, watch it!”

Before Rhodey can respond, the door opens and he hears Pepper ask, “What’s going on in here?”

“Nothing,” Tony replies instantly, nudging Rhodey’s hands away from his face.

Rhodey just frowns and says, “Tony got punched for defending my honor.”

“You make me sound so noble, sweetie,” Tony says, sarcastic, but it doesn’t deter Pepper from coming over to them, looking concerned. Rhodey glances up at her warily—he’d been like that ever since they told him Pepper was part fae, but Tony thinks he’s getting better about it—but lets her bend down to inspect Tony’s black eye.

“May I?” she asks, and Tony doesn’t know what she’s asking so he just nods.

He startles at the touch of her fingertip to the edge of the bruise, but all she does is gently slide her finger over the dark purple skin. His face feels warm, but he doesn’t know if it’s because of the magic he assumes is happening or just Pepper touching his face.

“That should hold for the rest of the day,” she says with a sigh once she’s finished, straightening up. “You have got to stop getting hurt right before big TV interviews.”

Rhodey holds out a compact from the makeup bag so Tony can look at his reflection, and sure enough, the bruise is completely gone. He pokes the spot below his eye and it hurts, but he grins anyway.

“Shit, Pep, that’s awesome.”

She glares at him. “Don’t get used to it. You have an image to maintain. That I have to maintain.”

“What image?” Tony asks with a snort. “I’m pretty sure that’s already down the drain, right next to my pride and respectability.”

“Tones, come on,” Rhodey says quietly, giving his shoulder a squeeze. “Pepper’s right, you can’t just deck someone because they’re saying something you don’t like.”

“Even if they’re insulting you?”

“If someone insults me badly enough they need punched, I’ll do it myself,” Rhodey promises.

“Or I’ll pay them a visit,” Pepper says, dead serious, and Tony shivers involuntarily.

“Okay, okay. I’ll cool it with the punching,” he says, scrambling to his feet before Rhodey or Pepper can stop him. “We good?”

“For now,” Pepper answers, and Rhodey nods and stands as well.

“Oh,” Tony adds on his way out the door, spinning around and pointing at them, “and you absolutely cannot kill anyone. At least without telling me first.”

Rhodey rolls his eyes while Pepper looks aghast at the mere suggestion, but Tony’s gone before either of them can say anything.

* * *

Rhodey breaks the news of Tony’s kidnapping over the phone, because Pepper’s back in the States, but also because he doesn’t want to face her in person when he explains what happened. She takes it as well as expected.

“You were supposed to  _protect_ him,” she nearly growls, ice masking the hurt and the fear, and Rhodey feels the phone in his hand grow cold.

“Pepper—” He tries to calm her, juggling the phone between his hands as frost begins to form.

“Why aren’t you out there? Why aren’t you getting him back?”

“Pepper! I’m doing everything I can, I swear. If I were on the ground I could track him, but they won’t let me go in.”

Pepper takes a deep breath, muffling something that sounds suspiciously like an aborted sob, and when she speaks again, calmer, the phone feels like it’s thawing.

“I’m sorry. I just can’t believe…”

“Me neither,” he whispers, knowing exactly how she feels right now. “But we’ll get him back, I promise.”

There’s silence on the other end for a moment. Then, “I can pull some strings. Get your boss to make a deal to let you go in yourself.”

“Pepper, no,” he hisses, lowering his voice. “Are you an idiot?”

“If that’s what it takes—”

“I’ll get him back without you compromising yourself. Do you trust me?”

More silence. Rhodey frowns, wondering if he should be offended, but finally she says,

“I trust you. Bring him home, Jim.”

* * *

Tony wonders if the heat’s finally gotten to him and he’s starting to hallucinate. There aren’t wolves in the desert, right? It’s probably a mirage. Except this mirage is running right toward him and it’s not slowing down, and oh God he recognizes this mirage—

He drops to his knees in the sand as an over-sized black wolf barrels into him, his arms automatically coming up to wrap around that big furry body and just hold on.

“Jesus Christ, Jim, are you mad,” he says, voice dry and raspy, and it’s too hot to hold onto Rhodey like this but he can’t let go. Over the dunes several human soldiers appear, dark dots in the distance, but Tony doesn’t care, just buries his face in Rhodey’s fur.

It takes him a moment to realize Rhodey’s shifting back, bare skin instead of fur under his hands now, and he lifts his head to mutter,

“Naked in the desert isn’t as fun as it looks, buddy,”

Rhodey grasps at Tony’s shoulders, pulling him back into a hug, and Tony goes willingly. “Next time you ride with me, okay?”

Tony just laughs, holding onto Rhodey tighter, tears prickling at the corners of his eyes at Rhodey’s hand petting his hair.

“Also, Pepper’s going to kill you,” Rhodey adds, and Tony laughs harder, content to stay there holding on to him until the rest of Rhodey’s squad arrives to bring them home.


End file.
